The day-to-day responsibility for maintaining and updating Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and Bootstrap Protocol (BOOTP) provisioning servers can be labor intensive for a Multiple Subscriber Organization (MSO) service provider. Each provisioning server vendor provides a proprietary graphical user interface (GUI) and a unique database to allow the MSO personnel to control operations. A user may navigate through fifteen vendor GUI windows to set the necessary configurations on one provisioning server. Since having several provisioning servers from different vendors is common for the MSO service provider, the user must learn each vendor's GUI interface.
Furthermore, the settings entered into each vendor's GUI are stored locally on that vendor's provisioning server. This requires the MSO personnel to maintain each independent database in agreement with the every other database stored on the various provisioning servers manually. Database entries include primary and secondary network definitions, sub-network definitions, Domain Name System (DNS) configurations, Internet Protocol (IP) address management, Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) server configuration, Message-Digest Algorithm 5 (MD5--a type of boot file) file building, network policy management, Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) and legacy cable modem support, and support for various levels of service.
MSO service providers want a mechanism for distributed provisioning server management accessible to users at different levels of authorization, and at different physical locations. This mechanism includes a common user interface to streamline training and daily operations, and a central database that allows for automated checking and validation of additions, modifications and deletions, as well as report generation.